Ground cardamom is a fairly strong spice, with a very warm flavor. A very small amount goes into this cherry-almond rice pudding. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Dried cherries are added to the warm pudding before it is put into the fridge to cool. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Tart dried cherries go into the warm rice pudding mix. They will plump up in the pudding as it cools in the fridge. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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A layer of wax paper placed directly on the rice pudding as it cools keeps it from developing a "skin" on top of the pudding. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Cherry-almond rice pudding looks fancy when served in dessert dishes passed on to me from my grandmother. But even if you serve it in plain bowls, it still tastes just as delicious. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Toasted almond bits are ready to top cherry-almond rice pudding to add some crunch and texture to the dessert. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

I like to think I was not a picky kid. But then I think about the things I did not like as a kid, and I realize I was not super picky. I was just weird about a few things.

My dislike of a few things was huge. Corn was out. Corn tortillas and corn chips were OK, but corn was out. Sweet potatoes and strawberries were on the "NO" list with a vengeance.

Green bell peppers were (and still are) largely absent from my diet. Lima beans were swallowed whole, under threat of having all privileges revoked, washed down with water like large green pills.

And rice was never, ever, ever to touch my plate.

Thankfully as the years have gone by, I have mended my ways.

And it is a good thing. Because as an adult I now realize the things I missed out on when it came to food. Specifically the rice.

Without rice, how would I enjoy my beloved sushi? What would serve as the base of my delicious teri-ginger chicken?

And, most of all, how would I make a creamy and luscious rice pudding without the base ingredient of the rice?

With my kid, who is days from being 3, I thankfully have even fewer pickiness issues than my mom had with me. And rice is at the top of his list of things that he not only likes, but that he loves.

So when I told him one night that dessert was to be rice pudding with cherries and almonds ... Well, he just about lost his tiny marbles.

It was like I had created the trifecta of perfect ingredients to blow his toddler mind.

And this stuff kind of blew my mind, too.

The pudding itself is your basic rice pudding. All luscious and creamy and cooked down with milk and sugar and eggs. It is the extras that make it extra special.

I add what Ben, the toddler, calls cherry raisins. These are dried tart cherries. They go into the pudding when it is still warm, plumping up in the pudding to become sweet-tart tender morsels.

I add some warm spice with a tiny amount of ground cardamom. And a sweet, nuttiness comes from almond extract in the pudding and a crunch of almond pieces sprinkled over the top when serving.

No, this is not a quick dessert. But it is easy beyond belief. The largest chunk of time involved comes in the cooling. And it is a little torturous to have to smell it then wait for it to cool. But it is worth the wait.

It makes me so happy that as an adult my tastes have changed to include rice. Now if I could only get lima beans to taste this good.

Cherry-almond rice pudding

Time: 3 Â½ hours (includes time for cooling); Makes: 6-8 servings

1 cup water

Â¼ teaspoon salt

Â½ cup long-grain white rice

3 cups low-fat milk

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

2 egg whites

1 teaspoon pure almond extract

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

2/3 cup dried tart cherries

Â¼ cup chopped roasted, unsalted almonds

Directions

Bring water and salt to a boil in a heavy saucepan and stir in rice. Cover and reduce heat to low.

Cook until water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Stir in milk and sugar, and cook over very low heat, covered, until mixture is very thick (50 minutes to 1 hour).

Whisk together egg, egg whites, almond extract, cardamom and a pinch of salt. Add about 1 cup of the hot rice mixture into the egg mixture, whisking to combine.

Stir egg mixture into remaining rice mixture and cook over low heat, making sure it does not boil. Whisk constantly for about 1 to 2 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer reads 170 degrees. Remove from heat and stir in dried cherries.

Transfer pudding to a 2-quart dish and cover the surface with wax paper. Chill until cool but not cold, 1 to 2 hours.

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